The Library
by VigilantifiedMind
Summary: The only thing Jinora expected from the library, was to get her homework done. But when a certain delinquent with an undercut takes notice of her in there, who knows what trouble lies ahead. Kainora. Modern High School AU.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** You can also find this chapter on my tumblr blog korra-ships-kainora. updates should be coming pretty quickly with NaNoWriMo being next week. Enjoy!

Jinora tapped her pencil against her face, a habit she'd acquired a couple weeks into freshman year. She wasn't even writing anything; instead she was reading a chapter from her physics book. The steady beat helped her concentrate.

She squinted at her textbook, as if blurring her vision would somehow make it easier to read. It was times like this when she regretted taking AP physics.

Jinora glanced at the clock.

12:06.

They were late.

Perhaps they weren't coming. Jinora smiled at the thought, though she knew she was probably getting her hopes up.

_Creeeaaakkk. _The library door flew open. Jinora's smile faded as they filed in through the door. One by one the boys entered the peaceful library.

She removed her pencil from her face and the rhythm transferred to her foot as her leg began bouncing vigorously against the chair.

Every day at noon a group of obnoxious boys came into the library, dragging their scratched up skateboards behind them. So everyday around noon was usually the time Jinora would abandon hope of finishing her homework.

The once quiet library was quickly filled with laughter, non-stop deep-voiced chatter, and the constant presence of the word "dude."

Jinora wasn't a hateful person, but these guys irritated her. They only come in here because at this point in the lunch period, they've already terrorized the rest of the school. So why not just terrorize it all?

Even from across the room she could tell they smelt bad. They were all ragged looking. With their baggy yet tight pants and oversized t shirts.

None of them were attractive.

Except for _him._

Jinora didn't know his name. But she knew a bit about him. He was new to the school, yet he's already got the skater gang following him around. And she knew that he was the only decent looking boy in that group.

He had tan skin and dark hair that was cut in the most unusual way, the bottom half of his head was completely shaved. It was odd, yet she found it endearing. And his bright green eyes contradicted the deep color of his skin. But his smile made her shiver, it was as big and full of life as a smile can be.

Jinora shook her head and silently laughed at herself. Her parents would probably ground her for even looking at a boy like him.

She put in her headphones and Beethoven began ringing through her ears. Jinora prayed that the classical music would help her concentrate, though it hardly ever did.

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Kai propped his skateboard up against the table and swiftly took a seat, propping his feet up on the desk.

"Well aren't you just the king of the world," Skoochy took a stab at Kai's ego. Kai placed his hands behind his head and balanced his chair on its back legs.

"As a matter of fact, I am," Kai's expression was smug. The others laughed.

"Yeah some king of the world," Murry chuckled. He walked behind Kai and kicked the leg of his chair. Kai's head smacked down as the chair collided with the floor. Everyone burst out laughing.

"Ha. Ha. Very funny," He rolled off the chair and looked around the library, making sure nobody cool just saw him receive a minor concussion. He scoped the library and luckily for him, it was just nerds and the loner chick.

That's what he liked to call her. She was in here every day, sitting all by herself. Granted, Kai had seen dozens of nerds sitting alone. But this one was different. She was, well, _actually pretty_.

She hadn't seen him fall. Instead she was focused on her homework, her head slightly swaying along to whatever was playing in her headphones. He stared at her a moment longer, hoping she would look at him. He'd caught her staring at him a few times before. The eye contact usually ended with her blushing furiously.

"Hey lover boy," Skoochy called. "You gonna take a seat or what?" A couple of the boys chuckled. All together there were six of them; himself, Skoochy, Murry, Drew, Grant, and Tommy. Skoochy thought of himself as the leader, but Kai could manipulate any of them to do what he wanted.

"Shut up," Kai smacked the back of his head. "I was told you used to date that chick." Kai picked up his chair and sat down.

"You open the door for a girl one time and suddenly everyone thinks you're dating!" Skoochy exaggerated each word with a swing of his head. "That's the last time I ever open the door for anyone."

"People only thought that because you _never _have manners!" Drew chuckled.

"Hey she was carrying a lot of books," Skoochy defended himself. "I'm not a complete monster!"

"Aw! You really do have a heart!" Tommy cooed. Kai chuckled, along with everyone except Skoochy.

"Yeah, whatever. Just shut up."

"Don't dish it if you can't take it," Kai chuckled.

"Hey guys check this out," Grant had a mischievous grin on his face. "Let's still how far I can launch my pencil." He placed his pencil partially over the edge and smacked down on it. The pencil soared through the air, landing about ten feet away.

"Oh come on. That's nothing," Skoochy challenged. He positioned his pencil the same way and catapulted his pencil fifteen feet away. "And that's how it's done." Skoochy smirked. Kai laughed, shaking his head. "What? You think you can do better?"

"I never said that," Kai raised one eyebrow.

"Just give it your best shot," Skoochy leaned back in his chair. Kai smiled, accepting the challenge. He took his pencil and placed it on the edge. He stood up and lifted his arm, determined to build as much momentum as possible. He swung his arm and the pencil flew higher and higher, to an almost miraculous height. It was almost as if there was wind inside the library, carrying the pencil further away. Finally the pencil landed.

Right on her head.

The loner chick looked up from her book, her eyes as wide as saucers. She reached up and touched the spot on her forehead that had just been hit. Then she looked down at pencil that was now lying on the ground. Her eyes looked once more at the group of boys. But more specifically, at Kai.

Immediately the other boys began to laugh their heads off. Except Kai. He continued to stare at her. She swiftly packed her textbook into her backpack and slung it over her shoulder. The laughter continued as she exited the library.

A minute later the laughter had died down, but before anyone could say anything else a small voice came from behind a large desk.

"Boys, didn't you hear the bell ring?" The librarian, a wrinkly old lady who smelled strongly of lemons, asked. Kai looked at his phone. 12:33. That meant he had two minutes to get to his class across campus.

"Shit."

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Jinora's face was still warm from the library. Her face at heated up intensely as she watched all those boys laugh at her.

Well, not _all_ of them.

He didn't laugh. Why didn't he laugh? Did he just feel sorry for her?

She shook her head, brushing off any thoughts of him, and continued to walk to class. But as she walked she heard the faint sound of something ripping. Frantically she checked her clothes, but everything was intact. Jinora shrugged and kept walking.

Suddenly the bottom of her shoulder bag gave way and ripped wide open, its contents spilling onto the filthy public school floor. "Great," Jinora sighed, looking at all her papers scattered on the floor. She knelt down and picked up each paper, along with a few books and various pens, pencils, and highlighters.

Once everything was into a nice pile, Jinora tossed her bag in the trash. It was useless now anyways. She glanced at her phone and saw the time. 12:34. She would never make it to her class in time. She scurried down the hallways as fast as her legs would permit.

"Incoming!" A voice shouted from down that hallway. Jinora turned around to see the boy from the library riding his skateboard at an alarming speed. She quickly clung to the wall in hope that he would glide right past her. And he would have if a teacher didn't suddenly open a door, causing him to swerve immensely to avoid collision. He lost control of his skateboard and came hurtling towards Jinora.

"Watch out!"

_Omf_. The boy crashed right into her. He knocked her right off her feet as he fell backwards. The papers she had just spent forever picking up went flying into the air, once again scattering throughout the hallway. Her eyes were clenched together as she felt the force of the fall. Somehow, it wasn't nearly as bad as she had imagined. Slowly her eyes opened.

"Shit," Jinora was right on top of him. Her face was pressed against his chest. Immediately her cheeks began to heat up and she bolted into an upright position.

"Ow," the boy let out a slight groan in pain. Jinora looked down. She was sitting on his-

_"__Oh my spirits," _She stood up as fast as she could. "I am so sorry!" Her whole body was heating up with embarrassment.

"No, it's fine really," he sat up, rubbing the back of his head. "I'm more concerned about my head."

"Are you okay?" She knelt down by him, attempting to examine his head. "I am so sorry."

"Why do you keep apologizing?" he chuckled. "_I _ran into _you_. Remember?"

"Sorry," Jinora looked away from him as she began picking up her papers once again.

"Here, let me help you," he got up and knelt beside her, handing her papers and books from the floor.

She didn't look him in the eyes one time as he helped her. She was far too embarrassed. It's one thing to crash into a stranger in the hallway, but it's another to crash into the stranger you've secretly been admiring from afar.

Finally, Jinora had everything back in order. They both stood up at the same time. "I, uh- thanks," Jinora managed to say.

"It was my fault anyways, don't worry about it," he smiled. "Thanks for not getting mad after I knocked you off your feet."

"Well, every girl dreams of getting swept of her feet. Just maybe not like this," she finally looked him in the eyes. He was a lot taller than she had imagined; he was a whole head above her.

"I'm Kai, by the way," he offered his hand for her to shake. She smiled. Now she wouldn't have to refer to him as 'that boy.'

"Jinora," she grabbed his hand, which proved to be difficult with all her papers. The handshake lingered, each second getting more and more awkward. Jinora jerked her hand away, embarrassed. "I need to get to class."

"I'll, uh, see you around, Jinora."

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"Who can recap what happened in Book I of the Iliad?" Kai's English teacher asked the class. He had no intention of answering. Instead he sank deeper into his chair. He sat in the back of the class; his theory is that the teacher placed him there because she knew he wouldn't do any work.

Luckily for him, Murry sat in the back as well.

"Kai, you've been at this school for nearly two months and you haven't asked a single girl out," Murry whispered.

"And?" Kai didn't see his point.

"What are you waiting for? The girls at this school aren't that ugly," Murry said.

"I don't know man, no one's really sparked my interest," that was sort of true. Until ten minutes ago, no one had sparked his interest. But Jinora, she definitely sparked something.

"Oh spirits, you're not gay are you?"

"What? Of course not."

"Just making sure," Murry raised his hands innocently. "But seriously, there's got to be at least one."

"Well, there is this one girl," Kai trailed off.

"Who? Is it Shelby Curtis?" Murry asked. "Word on the street is that she wants you to ask her to homecoming."

"No, not her," Kai had talked to Shelby. She was nice, she was just another carbon copy of every other girl at the school. "Do you remember that chick from the library?"

"_No_," Murry's face dropped. "You can't be serious."

"What? She's not that bad," Kai said.

"Kai, there's a reason we teased you and Skoochy about liking her. She's probably the biggest, weirdest nerd on the planet. She's got these freak parents who lock her in a cage if she doesn't get good grades," Murry said.

"You don't honestly believe that, do you?" Kai was amazed at Murry's stupidity sometimes.

"She's pretty alright, but she spends every day alone in the library. She's probably mentally unstable," Murry looked around, as if she could somehow hear them.

"So she's a nerd and she's mentally unstable? Jeez, Murry, make up your mind," Kai sighed.

"I'm trying to look out for you man, just stay away from that chick."

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After eight long hours at school, Jinora was finally home.

"How was school sweetie?" Jinora's mom, Pema, asked.

"It was good," Jinora could barely repress a smile thinking about her first interaction with Kai. "But my bag broke."

"We'll have to go get you a new one then," Pema said sweetly. "Do you have a lot of homework?"

"I just have some more studying to do," She said.

"Get started and when you're finished, we can run to the store."

"Okay," Jinora set all her books and papers on the kitchen table and headed for the fridge. She grabbed a bottle of lychee juice, along with her text book, and headed up to her room. She hopped onto her bed and set her text book and juice in front of her.

Reluctantly, Jinora opened her physics book. She began reading the first line, but to no avail. The only thing she could concentrate on was Kai.

He only talked to her because he accidently knocked her down, and she embarrassed herself immensely. Yet she couldn't help but be overjoyed that he now knew who she was.

Perhaps today was the first and last time they would talk. Jinora frowned at the thought. He had said "I'll see you around." Surely that implied he had intentions of talking to her again.

However, it's still a vague statement. If only he had said "I'll talk to you later." Or something more specific. Jinora had never understood those girls in the movies who racked their brains over things guys said. Now she was one of those girls.

She flailed her body back into the arrangement of pillows on her bed and stared at the ceiling. Jinora had promised her dad that she wouldn't get a boyfriend in high school so that she could concentrate on her grades. It was a good promise. Kai was clearly interfering with her studying.

This green eyed boy would prove to be more trouble than he's worth.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Hey look! I updated! It only took me like a month. Don't expect regular updates by the way, my schedule is too busy and I'm too big of a procrastinator. This chapter was fun to write I think (though its mostly dialogue). Enjoy!

Chapter Two: The Coffeehouse

Jinora adjusted her new backpack on her shoulder as she walked into her history class and took her seat.

"Hey girl." Jinora looked up and saw her friend taking her regular seat beside her.

"Hey Shelby," she greeted her.

"How's it going?" Shelby asked while reaching in her back and digging around until she pulled out her mirror. Carefully she adjusted her make up, though Jinora could see nothing wrong with it. Jinora liked Shelby though. For someone so concerned with her own looks, she sure didn't give a damn about other peoples.

"I'm good," Jinora started pulling her binder out. "How about you?"

"Absolutely fantastic!" her blonde ponytail bobbed with her energetic answer. "I have the best news ever!" Jinora leaned forward, intrigued.

"Please do tell."

"Oh first, I didn't get the last half of the notes yesterday, do you mind if I borrow yours?"

"Of course," She opened her notebook and flipped through the pages until she stumbled on the notes. "Here you go."

"Thanks Jin, you're a life saver," Jinora shrugged her shoulders, brushing off the compliment. She glanced around the room as Shelby rushed to copy the notes. Her eyes looked over everything carefully yet carelessly. Absentmindedly she accounted everything she saw. Books, maps, globes, Kai-

Kai? She did a double take. He wasn't actually in the classroom, but he stood out in the hallway, which Jinora could easily see because the teacher always kept the door propped open.

Immediately Jinora wanted to say hello. But that would be preposterous. Not only because he was out in the hall while she sit in a class, but also because she had no real reason to say hi. They bumped into each other (literally) in the hallway one time. So what? That didn't automatically make them friends. Though they had been formally introduced, Jinora was still back at square one: staring from a distance.

Not that she minded. He was talking on the phone with someone, which she found intriguing to watch. She observed the way he paced back and forth as he talked, the way his jaw moved when he talked. The way he talked with his hands, the way-

"Jinora?"

"Huh?" she whipped her head around.

"I was just telling you my big news," Shelby looked at her curiously. "Or at least I was trying to."

"Sorry," she nervously tucked a strand of hair back. "I got a little distracted."

"I can tell," Shelby giggled. "What were you staring at anyways?"

"I, uh, there was a really big cockroach in the hallway."

"A cockroach? I hate cockroaches!"

"Forget the cockroach," Jinora urged. "What's your big news?"

"Oh yeah! You will never believe it," Shelby was grinning from ear to ear. "Tonight I'm going on a-"

"Good morning class," Shelby was cut off by the teacher who was attempting to grab the class' attention.

_I'll tell you later_, Shelby mouthed. Jinora nodded and turned to the teacher. A class time passed by before Jinora had even packed up her things, Shelby had already left.

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>"Boy do I have a surprise for you," Skoochy put his arm around Kai's neck.<p>

"I have to get to class," Kai pulled Skoochy off. "This better be good."

"Don't worry," Skoochy grinned. "So I was informed on your,_ crush._" Skoochy said the word as if it was poisonous.

"My crush?"

"The nerd girl," Skoochy clarified.

"Oh. _Oh._ Please tell me you didn't do something stupid," Kai reached for the bridge of his nose, a stressful habit of his. "I don't need your help with girls."

"But that's the thing, you do," Skoochy tapped Kai's chest. "See you're picking the wrong kind of girl."

"Skoochy."

"Just hear me out, man."

"Fine, talk fast."

"Okay, you could have any girl in this godforsaken school. So why go for the mediocre ones? Now you're too close to the situation to understand your mistake, which is why I set you up on a date with Shelby Curtis today. Later man!" He ran off before Kai could get a word out.

A date with Shelby? "Damn it, Skoochy."

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"Jinora!" The barista shouted her name. She closed her book and set it down on her table. And it was _her_ table. Jinora was a regular here at the local coffeehouse. She came in at least once a week to do homework or just read. As much as she loved her family, they were too much sometimes. This place was her escape.

And she'd chosen her table very particularly. It had a nice view of the window, so she could watch people walk by the shop. But at the same time she was basically hidden from everyone else.

"Thank you," Jinora grabbed her drink, the same drink she got every week.

Same table. Same drink. Different book.

She picked up her book. It was a cheesy romance novel; those were Jinora's guilty pleasure. Of course she could never tell her dad she was reading such an "unchallenging" and "predictable" book. As far as he was concerned, she was reading Dante's _Inferno_ or perhaps _The Tragedy of Julius Caesar_.

The repetitive sound of the café always became a dull hum, nice for concentrating on reading. The sound of grinding beans, blenders, and the occasional shout of a name. And as Jinora climbed deeper into her book, she heard less of the noise and more of her own rampaging thoughts.

"Kai!"

Jinora's head shot up, she had heard his name loud and clear. What was Kai doing there? She saw his messy undercut and watched his tan arm reach for a drink. So it was definitely him. Would he come sit by her? Jinora didn't usually let people sit with her, but she felt she could make an exception this one time. Quickly she threw her book in her bag and pulled out something more sensible, her homework. Nonchalantly, she smoothed out her hair and tucked a strand behind her ear. In that instant she wished Shelby were there so she could borrow her mirror.

"Shelby!" The barista shouted.

Shelby?

Shelby grabbed her drink and started talking to Kai. Jinora's eyebrows knit together in jealousy just watching them talk. Her head nearly exploded when they sat at a table together. Shelby was facing towards Jinora while Kai was facing away.

It hurt to watch them together but Jinora couldn't look away, until- "Jinora!" Shelby called her name. Jinora quickly tried to look like she was doing her homework and not stalking their date. Kai turned around and looked at her, his eyes wide.

"Shelby?" Jinora tried to act like she was just noticing them. Shelby beckoned her over. Reluctantly, she got up, grabbed her drink, and walked to their table.

"Hey guys," Jinora brushed a strand of hair from her face.

"I didn't know you were going to be here today!" Shelby beamed.

"I decided to come last minute," Jinora shrugged.

"Oh where are my manners? Jinora this is Kai. Kai this is my friend Jinora," Shelby gestured back and forth between the two of them.

"I know Jinora," Kai said.

"You do?"

"We just met yesterday actually," he grinned. Jinora's cheeks burned up remembering the incident.

"That is _too_ funny!"

"So are you guys on a, uh, date?" Jinora asked. Kai stared at her a moment before replying.

"Uh-"

"Yes, we are," Shelby was blushing now.

"Don't let me intrude then," Jinora tried to hide her disappointment. She turned to walk away but ended up walking straight into another person, causing her drink to spill down the front of her shirt. Jinora winced as the hot liquid seeped onto her chest.

"Oh dear I'm so sorry!" an elderly woman, the person whom Jinora played human bumper cars with, apologized frantically.

"It's fine really," Jinora set her cup down and tried her best to choke down her tears, but the pain of the hot coffee was too much. Tears slowly fell down her face as she rushed to the bathroom, the door slamming behind her.

"Jinora? Are you okay?" Shelby followed her into the ladies room.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she wiped a tear from her cheek.

"Here lets get you cleaned up," She grabbed a paper towel and began dabbing Jinora's shirt.

"No you should get back to your date," Jinora protested.

"Oh he can wait a few minutes."

"Was this your big news?" she asked.

"Yes, it was," Shelby grinned. "When Skoochy told me he wanted to go on a date with me I just couldn't believe it."

"Wait, Skoochy asked you for him?"

"Yeah, it was kind of weird. But who cares? He's _so_ cute, don't you think so?"

"Skoochy?"

"No, Kai!"

"Oh yeah, he's pretty cute I guess," Jinora hoped she wasn't blushing.

"I mean, I don't usually go for guys like him but-"

"Guys like him?" Jinora asked. "What do you mean?"

"Oh you know," Shelby waved her in the air. "Like a delinquent skater boy type."

"You should get back to him," Jinora said. "I'm fine, really."

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"No way!" Shelby gasped. "You did not say that to the cop!"

"I did, I swear on my life," Kai grinned. He was having a lot more fun than he intended. Granted, he was still mad at Skoochy for doing this without his consent, but Shelby wasn't half bad. But his thoughts kept going back to Jinora. Was she actually okay? Shelby had said she was fine, but who spends 45 minutes in the bathroom?

"I cannot believe you," she playfully shoved his arm, a classic flirting move. His natural response would have been to smirk, wink, or do something flirtatious, but he didn't.

"It's getting a little late don't you think?" Bullshit. It was only 4:30. But Shelby ate it right up.

"You're right! I have so much homework to do, you have no idea."

"Do you want me to walk you home?" Kai asked, silently praying that she'd say no.

"No, if my dad saw- I mean, I'm fine."

"Let me guess, you can't be seen with me because of my tattoos?" Kai had heard this all before. He'd never met a girl who would gladly introduce him to her parents.

"It's not you, it's my dad," she shrugged. "But I had a really nice time,"

"I'll see you tomorrow, Shelby."

"Goodbye, Kai."

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"This is just fantastic," Jinora grumbled to herself. She had managed to spend nearly an hour in the bathroom, desperately trying to get the stain out of her shirt. She had completely taken her shirt off and washed it in the sink, then doing her best to dry it off with paper towels. All that time wasted, and she still had a huge stain in her now very wet shirt. Completely giving up hope, she decided to leave.

What she saw when she stepped out shocked her more than the steaming hot liquid had when it went down her shirt.

Kai was sitting alone.

At_ her_ table.

"Kai?" It almost looked as if he was sleeping.

"Huh?" His head groggily lifted.

"What are you still doing here?" she asked. "Where's Shelby?"

"Oh she left already. I wanted to make sure you were alright," he shrugged.

"That's very sweet of you," That was an understatement. It was _extremely_ sweet of him.

"Can I walk you home?"

"What?" The question took her by surprise. She thought he would just leave or something.

"I'm sorry, I know we don't really know each other that well I just thought-"

"I would love you to walk me home."

"You're not worried?" he asked.

"Worried about what?"

"Nothing," he shook his head. He picked up her bag and handed it to her then walked to the door and held it open. Who knew a "delinquent skater boy" could have such manners?

"Can I ask what you were doing in the bathroom for so long?" He avoided eye contact when asking the question. Jinora giggled.

"I was trying to get the stain out of my shirt," She explained. "Though I failed horribly."

"Is that why your shirt looks, well uh, wet?"

"Yes, that's precisely why." She glanced down at her wet shirt, an extremely unattractive piece of clothing.

"So what do you like to do?" Kai asked. "Besides sit alone in the library."

"Ha. Ha. Speaking of the library, can you tell your friends to stop throwing things at me," she teased.

"Actually that was me," He admitted sheepishly.

"That was _you_?" She mock gasped.

"I'm sorry I- I didn't-"

"I'm teasing!" She shoved his arm. He smirked.

"What? I totally knew you were teasing."

"No way, you got so scared!" Jinora laughed. "But to answer your question, I like reading, martial arts, and yoga."

"See I would not have pegged you as a martial arts kind of gal," he slowly shook his head.

"Well, you don't really know that much about me," she subconsciously tucked the same strand behind her ear.

"I would love to learn more, please teach me your ways," He winked. Jinora was blushing now, to no surprise. "And I hope you know where you're going, because I'm following you."

"My house is just around the corner," she assured him.

"Wanna ride the rest of the way?"

"On that?" she gestured to the skateboard he was carrying.

"Yeah, it'll be fun I promise," he grinned expectantly.

"Okay..?" She agreed hesitantly. He set the skateboard on the ground and motioned for her to get on it. "I better not break anything, I've already had bad experiences with this skateboard."

"Stop worrying, I'll hold onto you the whole time." He smiled. Unsure of herself, Jinora stepped onto the board. "Okay now I'm going to push you, but lean where you want to go. Got it?"

"Sure," her voice was shaking. Jinora barely stopped an inhuman noise from escaping when Kai put his hands on her waist.

"You ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be, I suppose." He pushed her forward, the sensation of his hands on her was enough to make her knees buckle, and it did. "Stop! Stop! Stop!"

"We barely went five feet," he said.

"I know I just-" she turned to face him, their faces were just inches apart. It was the first time she was really close to him, unless you count the crash, which she didn't. His eyes were far more dazzling up close. From a distance they were just bright green, but up close you could see the specks of gray and brown, almost like two caramel apples. Jinora gulped. "Sorry, let's try it again."

"You're going to have to trust me," Kai said.

"I trust you," still strangers really, yet she couldn't help it.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Sorry for the slow update! Enjoy! (This is an short chapter I'm so sorry) **

"Would you like to explain yourself young lady?"

"What?" Jinora asked as she set her stuff down on the kitchen table. "I told you I would be home by five."

"Exactly," Her father drummed his fingers along the surface of the table. "So why did you decide to show up twenty minutes late with a boy?" Jinora looked at the clock, she hadn't realized how much time had passed.

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize what time it was," Jinora stared at her feet. "And the boy just walked me home, it's not a big deal."

"Not a big deal?" Tenzin scoffed. "Not a b-"

"Tenzin, sweetheart, that's enough," Pema put a firm hand on her husbands shoulder. "Jinora, go set the table, dinner is almost ready." Tenzin just shook his head and walked off to his office.

Jinora nodded to her mother and walked to the kitchen. She opened up the cupboard and grabbed a stack of plates, then laid them out on the table.

"Was that boy your boyfriend?" Ikki whispered. "It's okay, I won't tell dad." Jinora just rolled her eyes as she grabbed silverware.

"No, Ikki, that boy was not my boyfriend, we hardly even know each other," she shrugged. Although she wished she knew him better, that simply wasn't the truth.

"You like him though don't you?" Ikki wiggled her eyebrows.

"Get out of my face, Ikki," Jinora tried waving her off.

"You didn't deny it!" Ikki squealed. "Dad! Jinora has a crush!"

"Ikki!" Jinora smacked her arm. "Keep your little mouth shut!"

"It's not my fault you like a boy," Ikki laughed as she skipped off to her dad's office, surely about to tell their father all about how Jinora was planning to elope with Kai and have thirty children.

The door suddenly flung opened and revealed a very tan girl with her very pale girlfriend. "Korra!" Jinora squealed at the sight of her cousin. She rushed over and gave her a hug.

"Hey, Jin!" Korra hugged her back. "How's it going?"

"Eh, alright I suppose," Jinora shrugged. "Ikki is giving me a hard time right now though."

"Ikki? Giving you a hard time? That's hardly like her," Korra said sarcastically, causing Jinora to giggle.

"So what are you too up to?" Jinora asked.

"We were actually about to go see a movie," Asami replied for the two of them. "Would you like to come with us?"

"Oh god yes, get me out of this house."

0000000ooooooooo000000000oooooooooo000000000oooooooo00000

"Why are you so late?" Mako tapped his foot impatiently.

"Sorry, I was walking my friend home," Kai shrugged and hopped onto the couch, sprawling his feet across the cushions.

"Ooh was this friend a girl?" Bolin cooed.

"Possibly," Kai grabbed the tv remote and flicked it on.

"No tv until your homework is done," Mako snatched the remote from him and turned it off.

"Looks like I'm never watching tv again," Kai mumbled grumpily, hoping that his controlling foster brother would hear him.

Before Mako could yell at him again the doorbell rang. "That must be our Chinese food!" Bolin announced excitedly as he hopped up and ran to the door. He grabbed the food and paid for it while Mako urged Kai to get off the couch and come sit at the table. Bolin brought the food to the table and the three boys began to eat in silence.

Bolin was the first to break the silence, as he usually was, "So who's the girl that you walked home?" Bolin raised his eyebrows at Kai.

"You guys probably don't know her," Kai said, not caring to expand upon the complexities of his newfound crush.

"Try us," Mako challenged.

"Fine, her name is Jinora," Kai messed around with his noodles, hoping the subject would soon change.

"Woah," Bolin gawked. "Jinora like Korra's cousin Jinora?" Mako immediately tensed up at the mention of Korra's name. She was still a touchy subject to him. It was one thing to have your ex-girlfriend start dating someone new, but it was a whole other thing to have your ex-girlfriend start dating your ex-girlfriend.

"I don't really know," Kai shrugged. "There's only so many Jinoras so, probably."

"If that is Korra's cousin then you need to back off," Mako said sternly.

"Back off?" Kai was taken aback by Mako's sudden warning. "What do you mean, back off?"

"If I remember correctly, Jinora is an excellent kid; perfect grades, never gets in trouble. And she doesn't need to be corrupted by somebody like you," Mako was seriously starting to get Kai's nerves. He was a foster kid with bad grades. So what? It's not like him talking to her would cause her to get a lip piercing and dye her hair purple.

"Okay now you're just being ridiculous," Kai pulled his very best annoyed-yet-completely-rebellious-teenager face.

"No I'm serious," Mako put down his fork. "You should really stay away from her."

"Whatever, I'm leaving," Kai got up from the table and reached for his skateboard.

"Sit back down right now, Kai," Mako's voice sounded tired.

"Sorry, what did you say?" Kai acted oblivious as he reached for the door. Before Mako could yell at him again he was gone. This was a nasty habit of his, running off every time he felt annoyed. But Kai was one of those kids that needed a lot of time to think, and this is where he got his thinking time, riding his skateboard everywhere and anywhere. Sometimes he ended up somewhere and sometimes he just spent the whole time riding around.

He rode his skateboard through the town, passing numerous shops and restaurants. Kai finally stopped in front of the movie theater. It had been awhile since he saw a film in theaters and now was as good of a night as any to go see one.

He approached the ticket stand and bought a ticket for Big Hero 6. The movie had already started 10 minutes ago but he figured that he could still make it with all the previews they showed.

Kai walked into the dark theater and looked for a seat. As his eyes scanned the rows he noticed three girls sitting together. And one of them was Jinora. He immediately flipped the hood of his jacket over his head; if she saw him she would probably think he was stalking her or something. However, curiosity took over and caused him to sit right in front of her and the two other girls. If they talked, he wanted to know what they were saying.

Lucky for him they did talk. A lot.

"So why was Ikki giving you a hard time?" One girl whispered.

"I was late to dinner because I was walking home with a boy," he heard Jinora explain. "And Ikki was freaking out because she thinks I like him."

"Do you like him?" A different girl asked. Kai's breathe hitched at that question and he waited ever so impatiently for her to respond.

But there was just silence.

After what seemed like an eternity someone finally spoke, but it wasn't Jinora. "So you do like him!" The first girl quietly exclaimed. Kai couldn't help but smile.

"What? No!" Jinora defended.

"Jin, it may be dark but I can still see you blushing."

"I'm not blushing," she quickly replied. "I'm just feeling a like heat exhaustion that's all."

"Jinora, we're in a freezing cold theater," the second girl scoffed. "It's okay if you like him."

"Okay, fine," Her voice was laced with defeat. "I guess I kind of do like him." Kai silently mouthed the word '_yes_' to himself. If he weren't in a movie theater he would surely be doing a victory dance right about now.

"I knew it!"

"But it doesn't matter if I like him," Jinora sighed. "He likes somebody else."

In that moment, Kai wanted nothing more than to turned around and scream, 'No! I don't! I like you, Jinora!' But something stopped him. It was probably the little voice in his head telling him that girls don't like it when you eavesdrop in on their conversations. Especially when the conversations are about you.

"I'm sure that's not true," the second girl tried reassuring her.

"He went on a date with a different girl today," Jinora told them. "So its most definitely true."

"Whatever, Jin, give him a month and he'll be over this girl and all over you."

'_It won't take any time at all_' Kai thought to himself.

"Okay guys, lets stop talking," the second girl said. "I didn't pay ten dollars so I could talk in a dark room, I actually want to see this movie." The girls remained silent for the remainder of the film.

Kai found that he quite enjoyed the movie. He cried multiple times and laughed at Baymax throughout the film. One emotional rollercoaster away and the movie was over. The lights flicked on and Kai stood up. He kept his head ducked down, as he was completely aware that Jinora was still behind him.

He tried to exit the theater without getting noticed, but today just wasn't his day. Kai tripped right over a purse that some poor lady had left in the aisle by mistake. He sprawled forward and stopped a collision onto the ground with his hands. "Shit!" He exclaimed has pain shot up his wrists.

"Kai?" Hesitantly he looked up and saw Jinora's horrified face looking down at him.

"_Oh spirits_."


	4. Chapter 4

Kai ran his hand through his hair for what seemed like the millionth time. He had been staring at his sad excuse of a reflection for five minutes now. And he was not pleased. His green eyes looked tired and worn out and his brown mop of hair looked like he had a bird's nest on his head, despite his many attempts to make it look presentable. Usually Kai couldn't care less about how he looked, but today was different.

Today he was finally going to ask Jinora out.

It had been a few days since their little run in at the movie theater. After she caught him on the floor, they exchanged a few brief and painfully awkward words. He wasn't sure if she knew he heard their conversation, but judging from how red her face was; she probably did.

So nearly a week later, Kai had finally built up the courage to ask her out. He knew that his friends were going to flip. They would probably think that Kai was ruining the reputation he had somehow acquired in the two months he had been at this school. For all Kai knew, they could be right.

One thing he did know, however, was that he didn't care. Kai had never cared much about what people thought of him anyways. Especially people in high school, considering less than two years from now these people wouldn't be a part of his life.

After on final scan of his reflection, Kai exited the bathroom and headed to the library. When he got there he wasn't the slightest bit surprised to see only two tables in the whole place were occupied. At one table sat Murry, Drew, and Grant. Jinora sat alone at a different table.

His eyes flicked back and forth between the two tables, unsure of where he wanted to go. Unfortunately the decision was made for him when Drew shouted his name.

"Kai!" He raised his voice. "Get over here!"

"Shhhh!" The librarian hushed him in an irritated tone.

"Sorry," Drew whispered sheepishly as he waved his arms frantically, beckoning Kai over to the table. Kai rolled his eyes as he headed over to the table. He glanced over at Jinora, who had been staring at him. When they made eye contact she immediately looked down at whatever homework was positioned in front of her, obviously embarrassed, which Kai found extremely adorable.

"I haven't seen you in here all week," Drew observed. "Where you been?"

Kai decided to ignore the illiteracy of Drew's question and answered him. "I just haven't had any time," he shrugged. No way in hell was he telling them the real reason he'd been avoiding this particular part of the school. "But listen, I've got to go talk to Jinora about something."

"She doesn't let you copy homework, trust me I would know," Grant said. "So there's no point in going over there."

"I'm not trying to copy her homework," he shook his head.

"Then why are you going over there?" Drew asked.

"I just need to talk to her, okay?" Kai said defensively. He pushed his chair out and stood up.

"About what?" Murry asked, obviously suspicious of Kai's intentions.

"None of your business," Kai snapped, flipping his body around and heading towards Jinora's table. He knew that was a childish thing to say, but it was simply impossible to shake those boys off.

Kai's walk to Jinora's table started out extremely confident, he had his head held high and he was ready to ask this beautiful girl on a date. However, the instant she looked up at him, Kai turned into a hobbling ball of insecurities. It was too late to turn back though, she saw him coming. She smiled when she saw him pull a chair out and take a seat, which gave him a small little boost of confidence.

"Hi."

"Hey," she responded.

"How are you?" Kai asked, he figured it would be better to ease into the conversation than to just go for it.

"I'm good," Jinora nodded, he wondered if she actually meant it or not. Most people just said they were 'good' because its too tiring to actually explain how one feels. "I just have a lot of homework." She gestured to the numerous papers spread out in front of her.

"That sucks," he said, unsure of what else to say.

"Yeah," she replied, her voice trailing off a little. Kai wasn't sure what to say, so he just said nothing. Suddenly he wished he were still in the bathroom again rehearsing what he was going to say in the mirror. This had all run so smoothly in his head.

"So," Kai broke the painfully awkward silence that had crept its way between them. "I was wondering if you would-"

_Slllloooppp_

Kai was stopped midsentence when he suddenly felt a small and very wet presence on the back of his neck. A spitball. How old were those guys? Kai mentally cursed himself for choosing this place to ask her out. More than anything Kai wanted to turn around and yell at his friends for being so incredibly immature, but he decided not to. That's exactly what they wanted. He wouldn't let his irritation show.

"Uh, I was wondering if you would like to-"

_Slllloooppp_

The unpleasant feeling of having a spitball on his neck cut him off again. Determined not to turn around and give them exactly what they wanted, Kai simply reached for his neck and wiped the disgusting spitballs of his neck. He tried to ignore the wet and gross feeling that was now on his hand.

"I was wondering if you would want to go-"

_Slllloooppp_

"Okay that's enough," he growled, whipping his head around. "Are you guys five years old? Stop hitting me with spitballs before I seriously hurt you."

The boys immediately started dying with laughter. Of course they knew that he wasn't serious with his threat, so Kai was just hoping that he sounded angry enough that they would back off. He flipped back around to face Jinora, her eyes wide in confusion.

"Sorry about that," he quickly apologized for his outburst. "So, anyways, I was wondering if maybe you would want to-"

_WHAAAA WHAAAA WHAAAA WHAAAA_

"For the love of spirits," Kai groaned. Of course the fire alarm would go off when he's trying to ask Jinora out. The universe was horribly cruel sometimes.

"Please exit in an orderly fashion!" The old librarian announced. Kai groaned as he picked up his backpack.

"Kai hurry up," Murry called.

"Go without me," Kai replied. "I'm going to walk with Jinora." At this point he didn't give a crap about his friends, he was going to ask Jinora out even if it took all day. He prayed to the spirits that it wouldn't though. He turned to Jinora. "Is it okay if I walk with you?" He asked.

"Yes, of course," she smiled, slinging her bag over her shoulder. Together they walked out onto the schools sports fields, as they were instructed to do by the teachers. The walk was fairly short but they talked the whole time. It was all pointless conversation, talking about the weather or how annoying the librarian was, but Kai loved every second of it. It was weird the affect this girl was having on him.

"No way!" Jinora's mouth was wide open in shock. "There is no way you did that." She shook her head in disbelief.

"It's true!" Kai laughed. "And the best part was, I didn't get in any trouble."

"Okay now I know you're lying!" She looked at him knowingly. "There is absolutely no way you hit your principal with fruit pie and didn't get in trouble." At Kai's last school there had been a little, so called, incident. There was a food fight in the cafeteria, and though he hadn't been the one to start it, he was the one who nailed the principal in the side of the head. The only reason he didn't get in trouble was because some other kid took the blame, which made Kai feel bad- but not bad enough to confess.

"I speak the truth and nothing but the truth," Kai smirked, loving the twinkle she had in her eyes as she spoke. She just shook her head again, laughing to herself.

They had been waiting outside for nearly twenty minutes. Kai wasn't sure if it was a scheduled fire drill or if someone had pulled the alarm. Either way, he feared they would go inside soon and his opportunity would be gone. "So," he began. "Jinora."

"So," she mimicked him. "Kai."

"I was wondering if perhaps you would like to-"

"Oh my spirits," this time he was cut off by her. "Do not move. There is a bee right on your nose."

"What?!" Kai immediately reacted by flinching and smacking himself in the nose. That evidently wasn't the best idea, as it only resulted in the bee stinging him. "Ow!" he screamed. He immediately felt pain in his nose and went he felt it he felt throbbing. Kai hoped he wasn't allergic, he'd never gone in to be checked before.

"Did it sting you?" Jinora asked, a look of concern plastered on her face.

"Yeah, it did," he replied sheepishly and he removed his hand for her to see. He must of looked ridiculous because she had to stifle a laugh. "How bad is it?" He asked, still feeling pain.

"You look like Rudolph," she finally let herself giggle. "I'm sorry, its not funny." She switched to a straight face, but not without difficulty.

"It's a little funny," he caved, wanting to hear her laugh again. Jinora began laughing again.

"Okay I'm done now," she said.

"Attention students and faculty," The overhead announcer went off. "You are now permitted to reenter the building.

"Come on," she looped her arm through his. "Let's get you to the nurse."

The walk to the nurse was short, or it just seemed that way. They talked again, but not as much because Kai's nose hurt a lot. Finally they reached the nurses office; unfortunately another person was already there. The nurse told them to just wait a minute while she aided the other student. Silently they took each took a seat in the nurses office.

"So," Jinora broke the silence, which Kai was grateful for. "What did you want to ask me?"

"Oh right that," Kai had figured the last chance of him asking her out went soaring away after a bee stung his face. But now here he was, the opportunity knocking him upside the head. It was now or never.

"Jinora," Kai began, his palms sweating from nervousness. "Will you go on a date with me?"

"Kai, I would love to."

**A/N: jesus this was hard to write. I've had such bad writer block lately so can I just apologize because that chapter kinda sucked. It was also way shorter than I planned, so im sorry again. But don't worry, I have big plans for the next chapter ;) (this also isn't edited in the slightest bit so please forgive any spelling or ****grammatical****errors)**


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